With the rapid development of internet, a large number of mobile data multimedia services and various high bandwidth multimedia services have emerged, such as video conferencing, TV broadcasting, video on demand, advertising, online education, interactive games, etc., which can not only meet the increasing service needs of mobile users, but also bring new service growth points to mobile operators. These mobile data multimedia services enable multiple users to receive the same data simultaneously. Compared with general data services, these mobile data multimedia services have characteristics such as large data volume, long duration, and delay sensibility, etc.
In order to effectively make use of mobile network resources, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) proposes a Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS). This service is a technology of data transmission from a data source to multiple targets, which realizes network (including a core network and an access network) resources sharing and improves the utilization of network resources, especially the utilization of air interface resources. The MBMS defined by the 3GPP can realize not only the broadcast and multicast of low-rate text messages but also the broadcast and multicast of high-speed multimedia services, and provide varieties of video, audio, and multimedia services. These also conform to the future trend of mobile data development and provide better service prospects for the development of the 3G mobile communication technology.
The design of an MBMS Multicast Control Channel (MCCH) in the ninth version (Rel-9) of LTE does not adopt a layered structure, i.e., there is only one MCCH in a Multicast/Broadcast over Single Frequency Network (MBSFN), and resource location information of the MCCH is indicated by a Broadcast Control Channel (BCCH).
In the LTE MBMS, the services and functions provided by a Media Access Control (MAC) layer on a network side include scheduling, logical channel multiplexing and service identifier (ID), etc.; the services and functions provided by the MAC layer on a terminal side include logical channel de-multiplexing and reading of a service identifier, etc. The logical channel multiplexing includes the multiplexing of an MCCH and a Multicast Traffic Channel (MTCH), both of which can be multiplexed on the same MAC Protocol Data Unit (PDU) according to the LTE protocol. However, for the multiplexing of the MCCH and the MTCH, the prior art has not provided an effective solution to the problem that how to identify the type of a logical channel (including MCCH, MTCH, etc.) by a User Equipment (UE), which results in failure of the UE to accurately identify the type of the logical channel when various types of MBMS logical channels multiplex on an is MAC PDU, thus causing abnormal operation of the services, and bringing inconvenience to practical applications.